


Maybe This is Something

by Ellovesgirls



Category: Power Rangers (2017)
Genre: And Zack thinks they're both oblivious nerds, F/F, Kimberly is a confused dork, Trini is angsty af
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-14
Updated: 2017-11-14
Packaged: 2019-02-02 11:47:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,805
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12726057
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ellovesgirls/pseuds/Ellovesgirls
Summary: Trini has been avoiding Kimberly and the other rangers for a week and Zack is determined to figure out what's up.





	Maybe This is Something

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first attempt at fanfic in general and there are definitely some kinks to iron out, but I'm pretty impressed at how well this turned out.

The pavement was hard under foot. Trini could feel the icy air burning her lungs with every breath. Sweat dripped down her spine despite the cold and left icicles in their paths.

_“You’re a mess, Crazy Girl. What happened?”_

Zack’s stupid question echoed in her mind like a broken record. At least it was his voice and not hers. All Trini had been thinking about for the last week was Zack and how he seemed to see right through her and how Kimberly seemed to be tearing through her. After the whole Rita thing Zack had made it his personal duty to make sure Trini was alright, to make sure she was sleeping, or eating, or not about to kill either of her parents. Sure, Jason was the dad friend and Billy was the one they protected, but Zack was her brother in every sense of the word. She would die for each of the boys. They were her best friends and they would always be just that. If only she could say the same of Kimberly.

* * *

 

 " _Hey, Crazy Girl! You just gonna walk right past and ignore your favorite ranger?” Zack called from his place atop the abandoned train car. “I know you’ve been ignoring Kim and everything, but not me. I’m your bro!”_

_Trini put on what she hoped was a convincing smile and gave a single wave before attempting to stalk past him. “You’re not my favorite. And you are_ not _my bro.” she muttered._

_“Yeah, that spot’s reserved for the one and only Pink Ranger.” he smirked as he hopped off the roof and jogged to catch up. “Whoa, Trini, what’s going on?” he must’ve seen the storm brewing in her eyes. She could certainly feel it._

_Trini froze in place and whipped her head around to face Zack, “Nothing, okay?! Why does there have to be something wrong every time I want to be alone? Are you, like, my dad now or something? Just fuck off, okay!” the bitter words stung her throat and she immediately regretted lashing out. “I’m sorry, Zack, I didn’t-”_

_“No,” he held up his hands and took a step back, “You’re right. I should leave you alone. I’m sorry for caring.”_

_Trini let out an exasperated groan and plopped herself down on a pile of rocks, “Zack, please, I’m sorry I snapped. I’m just really stressed right now.”_

_Zack nodded and took a seat beside her, waiting for her nod of consent before draping an arm over her shoulders, “This is tough for you, isn’t it?”_

_Trini nodded, “The closer I get to you guys, the more I worry about my parents finding out and then moving us halfway across the country. Again.”_

_Sudden realization dawned on Zack’s face, “This isn’t about_ us _, is it? This is about Kim.” Trini didn’t meet his eyes, “Listen, Crazy Girl, I think you’re stressing yourself out over nothing. If your mom thought there was something going on between you and Kim, wouldn’t she have said something?”_

_“Yeah, but,” Trini sighed trying to decide if she actually wanted to finish her thought. She figured out of all the rangers Zack was the one who would understand the most. So, lowering her voice, she opted to tell him. “But, what if I_ want _there to be something. What if I want there to be_ more _between me and Kim.”_

“ _That’s the reason you’ve been ignoring her all week?” Trini nodded, embarrassed. Zack chuckled brightly, “Why can’t there be? You’re crazy, not stupid. You must be able to tell there’s been something up with her lately. The bond’s been acting all weird since Rita, and Billy thinks it has to do with you and Kim being weird with each other. Of course, Jason thinks it has to do with Zordon working us so hard, but we all know who the smart one is.” he winked._

_A harsh wind blew over the cliff and Trini snuggled deeper in to Zack’s side zipping up her bomber. She took the pause in conversation to try to click in to the bond. She could feel Billy’s excitement; either he just completed one of his projects, or his mom made chili. She could almost hear Pearl’s laughter through Jason’s link. It must be date night for his parents, so he was probably babysitting. Maybe he was telling her one of his lame jokes that they all secretly loved. Zack’s side was humming with intimacy, a protective buzz, that Trini knew was because of her. It was his caretaker instinct he developed after years of looking after his mom. Kim’s was harder to decipher._

_Trini closed her eyes and felt for Kim. Felt deep in her gut, reached for her, clawed for that connection. What she found was muddled and confused. Kim was angry, hurt possibly, and definitely crying._

_“I think I need to go.” Trini stood abruptly._

_“Yeah, sure.” Zack stood, too, then pulled her into a quick embrace before releasing her. She could feel his eyes on her back as she walked away, going in the opposite direction of her house._

* * *

 

_An hour later Trini was perched on a windowsill, rapping gently against the cold glass. A pair of soft brown eyes met hers from the other side. “Hey,” Trini smirked, “Can I come in?” she asked pointing at the lock on the inside._

_The confusion turned to excitement as the lock was flipped and the window slid open. Trini tumbled into the soft warmth of the Pink Ranger’s bedroom. Rubbing her hands together she slipped out of her bomber and took a seat on the edge of the simple black bedspread._

_“Wow,” Trini said, taking in the décor. “This room is definitely the Pink Ranger’s.“ The walls were a simple blush color. The furniture was all white aside from the bed which had black sheets. Above the bed Kimberly had hung a string of faerie lights with pictures dangling from the wire. Trini took careful note of the way they were organized. To any normal person it would have seemed like the pictures were strung at random, but Trini knew Kimberly well enough to see the pattern. They were hung in order of who Kimberly’s Ranger Link reacted most with._

_Trini’s picture was first, it was just her and Kimberly sitting in a booth at Krispy Kreme. Trini’s eyes were locked on Kimberly’s face, her hands intertwined in Kimberly’s shirt as the other girl’s head was thrown back in the midst of a hearty laugh. Trini remembered the exact joke she’d told, too. She looked confident and happy. Kimberly always seemed happiest when it was just her and Trini._

_“So,” Kim started, not wanting to seem unhappy to see Trini, but obviously confused, “What’s up?”_

_Trini cleared her throat and felt a slight blush creep up through her ears. For the first time in a week she actually looked at Kimberly, really looked. Her raven colored hair was tousled slightly like she had been running her hands through it repeatedly. Her bronze skin looked paler than usual and her brown eyes were dark and cloudy._

_“Is everything okay?” Trini began, “I felt something earlier- through the link- you were crying.” she then took note of the red blotches staining Kimberly’s cheeks._

_Kimberly looked as if she was going to protest for a moment but gave up and took a seat beside Trini on the bed. “It’s complicated.” was all she offered._

_Trini nodded. She wasn’t one to open up about her feelings, in truth she would rather pretend she didn’t have feelings at all than acknowledge them, but this was Kimberly, and there was something going on between them that needed to be figured out._

_“If you aren’t going to talk, then I will.” Trini said trying to ignore how close Kimberly was sitting, trying to forget the way her hair smelled like lavender, trying not to think about Kimberly’s thigh pressed against hers and her hand resting lightly over Trini’s. When did it get there?_

_“I had an interesting conversation with Zack today.” Kimberly hummed lightly, “He said something about the bond acting strange because we’ve been acting strange.” Kimberly dropped her eyes to the floor, “Why is that? We were getting so close before Rita, and even afterward. What happened that changed everything?”_

_Kimberly scoffed, “You really don’t know?” Trini stared at her with wide eyes. “_ You’re _the reason everything’s been weird. Every time I think you’re about to turn left you throw me through a loop by turning right. I want to get to know you, Trini, I want to be your friend, but you keep pushing me away. I get that I screwed up, okay? I get that what happened with Amanda was horrible, but I really thought that out of everyone you would understand what it’s like to be judged for something that doesn’t even define you_.

_“I saw you looking at that picture when you came in. It’s my favorite, not just because you’re in it, but because in that moment I thought there was actually a chance of us becoming something.” Now Trini wasn’t so sure Kimberly was talking about their friendship, “I thought that maybe things were going to be different, that_ we _could be different. This past week has been nothing but you ignoring me, pretending not to see me in class, acting like I don’t even exist, and I can’t figure out what I did to deserve that.” tears bubbled down Kimberly’s cheeks. “I’m sorry if I did something to make you angry, but please don’t hate me, because I don’t think I could take it. You’re my best friend, Trini. I don’t know what I would do without you.”_

_Trini couldn’t meet Kimberly’s eyes. She thought that in avoiding the other girl she would be saving herself from heartbreak, she hadn’t realized maybe she was causing her friend more pain by just disappearing the way she had. “I’m sorry, Kim.” she said softly, “This is just hard for me, okay? My mom, if she finds out about you I’ll be gone in two days. I can’t let that happen.” she allowed herself to look up and meet Kimberly’s eyes. There was a pain there that Trini had only seen once before, the night she’d told them all to skip her at the campfire._

_“Why? It’s not like you like me-” Kimberly’s eyes grew wide and Trini felt her face go hot. She stood quickly trying to pretend she couldn’t feel the Pink Ranger’s tight grasp on her wrist, “Trini, wait. Is that what this is about? Do you like me?”_

_“Yes, okay?!” Trini snapped, “Is that what you want to hear? I can’t be around you because it breaks my heart to see you and know that there could never be anything between us. I’m sorry I even came.”_

_Trini couldn’t look her friend in the face. Instead she grabbed her jacket and shook Kim’s hand off before jumping out the window. “Trini, please, come back!” Kimberly called after her, but she was already running. “Please, don’t go!” Kimberly sobbed. She kept running._

* * *

 

_Trini ran right to the Pit, right past Zack who had been eagerly waiting for her. Tears stung her throat as she pounded putties to dust_.

_“You’re a mess, Crazy Girl. What happened?” Zack appeared behind her wrapping his arms around her body to stop her from hurting herself as she screamed into the open cavern_.

_Trini’s screams broke into sobs as the putty simulation shut down and Zack held her against his chest. “Shh, it’s alright, Crazy Girl, I’ve got you. What happened back there?”_

_“I told her.” Trini sobbed, “I told her and then I ran because I couldn’t face her when she told me she would never love me back.”_

_"Did she actually say that?” Zack brushed the hair back from her forehead, “Did the words ‘I will never love you back.’ actually come out of her mouth?”_

_She hiccupped and closed her eyes trying to calm her firing nerves. Jason’s bond clicked on and she could feel his worry from ten miles away. She was checking her phone before it even buzzed._

_**Big Red:** Trini are you okay? Stay where you are. I’m on my way._

_**Billy Blue:** I’m coming, Trini. I’ll bring some of my mom’s chili. It always makes me feel better._

_**Crazy Girl:** I’m okay, guys. Zack is here._

_“You never answered me.” Zack brought her attention back to himself._

_“No, she never said that. She didn’t need to.” Trini wiped at her face with the back of her hand._

_“Trini, you’ve spent all these years building these walls to keep people out that you can’t see the obvious. You need to give her a chance to say those words herself before you freak out. I think she’ll surprise you.” he gave her a knowing smile before gently bumping her shoulder with his, “Besides, I don’t like seeing you two in this weird purgatory with each other. It takes away from you and me. We haven’t sparred in almost a week.” he cracked a devilish grin, “I’m pretty sure I could kick your ass right now, you’re so out of practice.”_

_Trini let out a barking laugh, “Oh, you’re_ so _on, Taylor!”_

* * *

 

As Kimberly’s house came into view, Trini could feel the other girl’s pain. Well, she had been feeling it since their earlier conversation, but here, in Kimberly’s front yard, she could feel it like a knife in the back. How ironic.

Once again, Trini found herself tapping on the cold glass of Kimberly’s window, her warm breath fogging the surface. She watched Kimberly glance up from her biology homework, the homework Trini had conveniently forgotten about. She watched as Kimberly swiftly wiped her hands over her tear-stained cheeks, and she watched as Kimberly slowly, ever so slowly, got up to open the window.

“What are you doing here, Trini?” Kimberly asked, her voice layered with hurt.

“I shouldn’t have run earlier.” Trini admitted. “I’m sorry.” Kimberly was silent. She studied Trini with an unreadable expression. “Can I come in? Please? It’s like ten degrees out here.”

Kimberly stepped aside and allowed Trini inside once again. Trini turned to face Pink Ranger, “I want us to be friends, Kim, no matter how I feel about you. I can get over it, I can handle losing a crush, but I can’t handle losing my best friend.”

Kimberly’s lips twitched into a small smile and Trini had only seconds to feel relieved before Kim was taking her face in her hands and kissing her.

Instinctively, Trini’s hands moved to Kimberly’s hair, tangling in the short locks as Kimberly pulled her closer to deepen the kiss. A thousand thoughts flew through Trini’s brain all ranging from _Holy shit, I’m kissing Kimberly Hart!_ to _This has to be a dream._

Kimberly moaned slightly into Trini’s mouth and everything came to a halt. Lightning struck in Trini’s core as Kimberly’s hands slid from her face to her hips, pushing her back so she had no choice but to sit down on the bed.

When they finally pulled apart, Kimberly stared down at Trini with a hungry glint in her eye. Breathing heavily she said, “You didn’t even give me a chance to explain earlier, you just assumed you knew what I’d say and you built those walls up and ran before you could find out the truth.”

“So, this is the truth? Because I have no problem with this.” Trini quipped earning a giggle and a gentle kiss from the Pink Ranger

“Just shut up and kiss me.” Trini nodded fervently as Kimberly connected their lips once more.

* * *

 

**Zack Black:** Those walls, Crazy Girl, they’re gonna be the death of you.

**Crazy Girl:** Actually, Kimberly Hart will kill me long before my inability to communicate in an efficient manner can do the job.

**Zack Black:** Whoa, man, I haven’t attended a full day of school since pre-k, gimme a break here.

Trini smiled as she tossed her phone over to where her jacket was resting on Kimberly’ desk. Kimberly sighed in her sleep next to Trini and the Yellow Ranger couldn’t stop herself from reaching over to card her fingers through Kimberly’s soft hair. Trini knew she was dancing with fire by allowing Kimberly to be more in her life. But, the thing is, maybe Kimberly had always been more. Trini knew for a fact that since the day she first saw Kimberly Hart she had been positive the girl would never be just a passing face. So, perhaps she had always been _something_.

Whatever the case, Trini knew that Kimberly was more than just her best friend,  she was her other half. And she was certain what she shared with Kimberly sure as hell was something.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading:) if you liked this be sure to check out my tumblr @mmpranger-things for more of our five favorite gays!


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